Once again, the Zeitgeist Stage Company has done a tremendous job of bringing to the stage a very accurate portrayal of the current state of race relations - this time through the lens of life in the ghetto and racial inequality within the world of journalism. "The Story" raises points about how far our society has come in terms of racism, and how far we still have to go.
The drama is based on the true story of black reporter Janet Cooke, who, to gain employment by the Washington Post, fabricated her resume and wrote a fictitious story about an eight-year-old girl turned heroin addict. Written by Tracey Scott Wilson, the play has already received many awards, mostly for its insights into race relations.
In Wilson's interpretation of the story, Yvonne, a young African-American newspaper reporter played by Nydia Cal??®¬ investigates the murder of a young billionaire turned teacher. Carried away by ambition, she embellishes the story, endangering the future of her paper.
The victim of this misunderstanding is young Latisha, played by Chantel Nicole Bibb, who pays too hard for an innocent and childish mistake. At the end of the play, we discover that Latisha is a young version of Yvonne.
"The Story" portrays racism towards African-Americans and exposes the types of reverse racism encountered within black society. Pat, the lead editor of the reporter's paper, emphasizes how blacks are especially perceived by what they say, stressing the importance of words.
An interesting feature of the plot is its evolution of the interracial romance between the young reporter, Yvonne, and the head of the paper, Jeff. Yvonne constantly worries that she's not "black enough" to be accepted by the African American culture, and that her hardworking sense of responsibility is perceived as "white" behavior.
David Miller, the stage designer and director, does a superb job of maximizing the stage space. Despite the fact that it's a smaller-than-usual theater and that the audience is practically on top of the actors, the scene design was well-thought-out and flowed seamlessly with the plot. The set is creatively adorned with laminated newspapers, and created an "official" feel that resonated throughout the piece.
The scenes themselves are fascinatingly constructed; as one character tells a story, he or she jumps from telling the story to actually acting out what occurred. This works to further enhance an already gripping dramatic plot.
The acting is all fairly solid, though the casting could have used some work. Despite Nydia Calon's powerful performance as Yvonne, the actress's Hispanic accent is very noticeable and impedes her character's believability. Michelle Dowd plays Pat brilliantly and is able to instill in the audience her sense of assurance, confidence and leadership.
Likewise, Gabriel Field tackles, and mainly succeeds at, the challenge of playing two parts, although at times the characters' similarities become disorienting. Keedar Whittle is an especially effective Neil with a powerful and passionate stage presence, and Caryn Lindsey plays a strong and somber Jessica Dunn despite her small part.
"The Story" is a riveting drama which attracts a more diverse audience than do most theater pieces. It is an eyebrow raising drama which brings together an interesting dialogue, a brilliant plot which features current affairs as its main story line, and a talented collection of actors who work with the drama to keep the audience thinking.
